Our night at the Best Western Zaan Inn in Zaandam

After our disappointing day in Brussels, we spend one night at the Best Western Zaan Inn Hotel. We arrived at Zaandam in cold, wet and simply miserable weather. The wind was so cold, it felt like it cut right through our jackets. And it was drizzling at the same time, the most horrible weather for arriving at a new destination and still having to find where you needed to go.

The Best Western Zaan Inn in Zaandam

We thought the walk from the train station at Zaandam to the BEST WESTERN Zaan Inn was short. BUT we took a wrong turn and ended up on the opposite side of the train tracks, which meant we had to turn all the way back and head in the right direction. And all the time it was drizzling, and it was so extremely cold, but eventually we managed to find the right direction and marched towards the hotel.

Reception and checking-in

Walking into the Best Western Zaan Inn was like arriving in a warm cocoon. Inside it was cosy. The receptionist was very friendly and immediately made us feel welcome. Lucky check-in was quick and efficient and in no time we were able to go to our room.

Best Western Zaan Inn

Our room

Hotel room in Best Western Zaan Inn

Our room was a decent size and spotless. It had a kettle, safe, desk, chair and a bar fridge. There was also coffee and tea supplies. The bed was huge and very comfortable. The bathroom had plenty of toiletries. The shower was hot and so welcome after our walk in the cold weather. Wifi was free. We did initially struggle to connect, and the connection was a bit slow, but eventually we got it working.

We were meant to go to Amsterdam to spend some time experiencing the nightlife in Amsterdam, but since it was so cold and unpleasant outside, we decided to spend the evening in our hotel room.

Supper

There were vending machines on the ground floor with snacks, toothbrushes and adapters – very convenient, but we didn’t need any of those things. The hotel has a restaurant and a bar, but since had spent a little too much during the rest of our trip, we opted for the supermarket for supplies for supper, which, lucky for us, had recently opened opposite the hotel in the direction of the Zaandam train station.

The bad: just one tiny little lift

The next morning we decided to leave our luggage in the luggage storage facility at the hotel since we did not know what time we would be back from visiting the little town of Zaanse Schans. Getting down from our room to the reception area was a nightmare. There was only one tiny lift (think four people without luggage) in the hotel and apparently all the tourist groups had just finished breakfast and decided to check out at the same time we did. Unfortunately, we were on the 6th floor, and our suitcases were so big and heavy. But after waiting for more than 30 minutes, we decided to be brave and tackle the stairs. Lucky there was still space for our luggage in the storage facility!

Our opinion

Overall we considered this hotel value for money. Its location of a less than 10-minute walk to the Zaandam train station and only about 15 minutes by train from Amsterdam makes it an option even if you are planning on spending lots of time in Amsterdam. There is an ATM on the way to the station, and if you cross the station bridge, you get to more restaurants. The room was large, and the additional conveniences such as the kettle helped us stay warm. The bed was very comfortable and the price extremely reasonable. We will stay there again if we ever go to Amsterdam again.